Expansion joint



June 28, 1938. '1 WITTENBERG EXPANS ION JOINT Fi led March 21, 1954 INVENTOR L es fer l Vl' 'fenery Y E N R O T T A Patented June 28; 1938 NTED STATE 2,122.16? smmusmu ro'r Application March 21, 1934, Serial No. 716,625

14 Claims. "(Cl- Eli-18) This invention relates to expansion joints, and more particularly, to preformed expansion joints for concrete roads.

One-object of the invention is to provide a preformed expansion joint for concrete roads, sidewalks, floors, or the like structures in which expansion or contraction of the structure is com pensated by compression or expansion within the expansion joint.

Another object of the invention is to provide a novel preformed expansion joint having an inherently flexible structure and capable of being wound into rolls for shipment or handling and later unwound and cut into strips of the desired size at the point of application.

. Other objects and advantages will appear from the following detailed description of the inven tion.

Heretofore in the construction of concrete roads expansion joints were generally formed in one of the two following ways. One method involved leaving a space between adjacent sections or sub-divisions of the concrete as laid and then filling this space with a bituminous material after the concrete had set. The bituminous material was poured into the space while molten and allowed to cool and set. The other way was to insert molded or otherwise preformed solid and rigid slabs of joint material between the individual sections of the roadway during the formation of the road. This was customarily done by setting the slabs in spacedrelation on the road foundation and then pouring the concrete between the slabs to form the individual sections. Expansion joint materials for use in concrete roads must be designed to compensate for expansion and contraction of the concrete which is continually taldng place. As the atmospheric temperature rises, the concrete becomes heated and v expands thereby subjecting the expansion joint Unless the to severe pressure from the sides. joint is properly prepared, some of the joint material will be forced above the surface of the roadway, thus forming undesirable irregularities in the road. Some of this extruded material will be picked up by passing traflic and spread over the adjacent surface of the road, thus giving the road an unpleasant appearance. In cold weather, the concrete contracts and causes the occurrence of voids or spaces between the sections of the road formerly occupied by the extruded expansion joint material. I y In concrete road building it has been found that expansion joints prepared in either of the two ways outlined above have comparatively invention short lives; Oozing out or extrusion of the joint material from the joint spaces and the removal and loss of such material by the passage of traffic. thereover make it necessary to fill the joint spaces several times during each season with additional 5 material if waterproof joints are to be maintained. Pouring hot joint material necessitates the provision of heating equipment at the point of application, thus materially increasing the cost of preparation and application of the joints. 1

In contra-distinction to such joints, I have invented a novel expansion joint in which expan-. sion or contraction of the road is compensated for, by compression or expansion within the joint. My expansion joint material in its preferred em- 15 bodiment comprises preformed rods or strips of suitable bituminous or other waterproofing material lying in and partly filling the valleys or -uepressions of a corrugated fibrous sheet. The

preformed rods may be held in place by flat 11- 20 brous side walls abutting against both sides of the corrugated sheet. There is thus provided a bitumen-containing fibrous envelope havinga plurality of voids or spaces therein. Compression of the envelope by the roadway will force the'25 bitumen into the internal spaces rather than above the road surface.

The-invention will be understood from the following description takenin connection with the accompanying drawing illustrating preferred 30 embodiments of the invention and in which the. same reference characters are used to illustrate the same parts in the different views.

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a strip of expansion joint embodying this invention and in 35 which preformed rods are horizontally disposed. A portion of one side wall of the strip is broken away to show the interior construction of the joint;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged section taken along the 40 line 2-'-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary sectional elevation showing a joint in place between two adjacent sections of a concrete roadway; 45

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of a modified form of expansion joint embodying this invention;

Fig. 5 is a vertical section through another modified form of expansion joint embodying this Fig. 6 is a vertical section through another 59 modified form of expansion joint embodying this invention, the joint of this figure diifering from that of Fig. 5 chiefly in that an odd number of preformed rods or filler strips are employed in lieu of the even number of rods utilized in the formation of the joint of Fig. 5; and

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary detail of an expansion 7 joint in which instead of the preformed rods circular in cross-section, rods of polygonal crosssection are employed in the production of the expansion joint;

Referring to the drawing, and more particularly to Figs. 1 and 2, it is seen that the expansion joint, denoted by numeral i, comprises a corrugated centerpiece or spreader strip 3 and fiat side walls 4 lying on both sides of and abutting against the spreader strip. The spreader strip and side Walls may be made of paper, roofing felt, cardboard, or other fibrous sheet mate-- rial or such materials impregnated with coal tar pitch, asphalt, or other bituminous saturant. The fibrous side walls 4 need be only sufficiently heavy to permit transportation of the finished material.

The corrugated spreader strip 3 and side walls 4 cooperate'to form a flexible fibrous envelope the interior of which is provided with a plurality of individual cells 5 separated from one another by the corrugations on the spreader strip. The cells may extend longitudinally of the strip of joint, as shown in Figs. 1, 5, 6, and 7, or they may be arranged transversely, as in Fig. 4, or at any desired angle to the strip depending upon the relative position of thecorrugated spreader strip. The transverse arrangement results in a more fiexible element, one which may be rolled up into rolls containing relatively long lengths sufficient for the formation of a number of expansion joints or short lengths for the formation of one or more expansion joints. The dimensions of the corrugations on the spreader strip may be varied to form an expansion joint of any desired width. For the usual road construction, for example, the corrugations are preferably of such size that the finished expansion joint will have a width of from one-half inch to one and one-half inches.

Preformed or shaped strips or rods 1 of waterproofing material, such as asphalt, coal tar pitch, or other bitumen, or a mastic made by mixing such bitumen with an inert filler such as slate flour, mica, asbestos or the like, are held within the cells 5 of the fibrous envelope. As shown in the drawing, the rods are of such size-that they do not completely fill the cells but leave a plurality of unoccupied expansion spaces 9. Although the rods may be made of any desired shape, it is preferred to make them cylindrical and of such diameter that they will nestle in the corrugations and abut against the outer walls 4. Such rods may be conveniently made by extrusion of the bituminous or other waterproofing material through a suitable die.

The bituminous material comprising the rods 1 is preferably of such melting point that it will not run or flow in the summer nor crack in winter. A coal tar pitch having a ring and ball softening point of about 70 C. or a coal tar pitch mastic may be employed to produce such rods.

Fig. 3 shows a portion of a concrete road having a length of expansion joint I in the space between adjacent concrete sections ID and II. Upon expansion of the concrete, the side walls 4 of the expansion joint will be forced closer together, thus causing the bituminous material to spread out into the expansion spaces 9 within the joint rather than being forced out above theroad surface.

Sooner or later the fibrous side walls 4 of the joint will be disrupted or broken thereby allowing the bituminous material to contact with and cement itself to the adjoining surfaces of concrete sections l0 and II. Upon contraction of the concrete, the joint will expand and be pulled apart by the receding walls of the concrete sections maintaining waterproofing material extending completely across the joint space and consequently maintaining a tight waterproofing joint therebetween.

If desired, the side walls of the envelope may be omitted and the bituminous rods kept in place by means of bands or strips of suitable material passing around the joint. The joint may also be built up in situ by placing the corrugated spreader strip in the joint between two adjacent concrete sections and then inserting the preformed bituminous rods into the spaces or pockets between the corrugations and the concrete.

The joints of Figs. 5 and 6 may be made from continuous sheets of unsaturated felt, saturated felt, fabric or sheet material which are disposed to provide cells 5 in walls 4. An even number of such cells are formed in the modification of Fig. 5 and an odd number in the modification of Fig. 6. In making these joints, a sheet of a width sufficient to form the length or a multiple of the length of the desired joint is folded, as shown in Figs. 5 and 6, to define the cells 5 with the width of the sheet disposed to form the length of the expansion joint. If desired, a plurality of sheets with the edges overlapping, abutting or in spaced relation may be folded as shown in Figs. 5 and 6 to form the cells 5. The ends of such sheet forming the Walls of the joint of Fig. 5 are indicated by the reference numerals l2, l3 and the ends of such sheet of Fig. 6 are indicated by the reference numerals l4, l5. In the case of Fig. 6, end 15 is disposed interiorly of the walls whereas in the case of Fig. 5, both ends l2 and I3 are disposed exteriorly of the Walls. If a sheet of a width sufiicient to form the length of a multiple of the joints is employed, it may be cut into desired lengths immediately after formation of the joint or immediately before application of the joint into the joint space.

In the modification of Fig. 7, the rods 1, instead of being circular in cross-section are polygonal. In the embodiment shown, rods octagonal in cross-section are employed, the reference numeral li indicating the sides of the octagon. Any other desired polygonal shape may, of course, be used.

Due to the employment of a continuous sheet and the folding thereof, as shown in Figs. 5 and 6, a somewhat stronger joint results as compared with the joint of Fig. 2 made from separate filler and side wall sheets. The use of rods polygonal in cross-section reduces possible slippage between the rods and the corrugated or folded sheet forming the cells 5 and tends to produce a stronger joint.

It will be apparent from the above description of the invention that my expansion joint may be readily and cheaply manufactured, and is simple and durable in construction. The joint is flexible and can readily be wound into cylindrical rolls for handling and shipment and later unwound at the point of application, and in cases where the roll contains a length of material suincient to form a number of joints, cut into desired lengths. The joint may be made in units of the desired height and length or may be formed into larger strips and cut into the desired size on the job. Installation of the joint does not involve the use of special equipment such as heating apparatus.

melting pots, extrusion and pouring devices. After the joint of this invention is installed, .it provides a waterproof construction which is durable and lasting and requires no further attention.

It is to be understood that this invention is not restricted to the present disclosure otherwise than defined by the appended claims.

I claim:

1. An expansion joint comprising an envelope ;vidual strips of bituminous material only partly filling said cells, each strip being individual to a cell.

3. An expansion joint comprising fibrous sheets cooperating to form a plurality of spaces each of which is substantially surrounded on all sides by said fibrous sheets, and waterproofing material of preformed shape in said spaces, each shape being individual to 'a space.

4. An expansion joint comprising a plurality of flexible sheets cooperating to form intermediate spaces extending the length of the joint, and strips of bituminous material in said spaces, said strips being of insufficient size to completely fill said spaces when said expansion joint is in uncompressed condition.

5. An expansion joint adapted to be placed between adjacent sections of a concrete road comprising flexible side walls, a corrugated fiexible strip between said side walls, said strip dividing the space between the side walls into a plurality of individual cells, and preformed rods of,

bituminous material lying between the side walls, said rods being of such size that they only partially fill said cells when the expansion joint is in uncompressed condition.

-6. A preformed expansion jointadapted to be placed between adjacent sections of a concrete road, comprising fiat fibrous side walls, a corrugated fibrous strip between said side walls and strip extending between said side walls, said strip dividing the space between the side walls into a plurality of substantially parallel cells, and preformed cylindrical shaped rods of bituminous material extending longitudinally within the cells and partly filling the same, said fibrous side walls being of such strength as to be disrupted upon compression of the joint by expansion of the adjacent concrete sections.

8. An expansion joint comprising flexible side walls, a corrugated flexible strip. between said side walls, said strip dividing the space between the side walls into a plurality of individual cells and preformed rods circular in cross-section of waterproofing material partly filling said cells.

9. An expansion joint comprising side walls .of

flexible waterproofing material, a corrugated flexible strip of waterproofing material disposed between said side walls and dividing the space therebetween into a plurality of individual cells, and. a preformed rod polygonal in cross-section of waterproofing material in each cell partly filling the same. a

10. An expansion joint comprising a continuous sheet folded to provide spaced side walls and a plurality of individual cells therebetween, and a preformed rod of waterproofing material in each cell.

11. An expansion nous saturated felt sheet folded to provide spaced side walls and a plurality of individual cells therejoint comprising a bitumi-.

between, and a preformed rod of bituminous material in each cell.

12. An expansion joint comprising a sheet provided with spaces separate and apart from the voids formed between the fibers constituting said sheet, said spaces being adapted for the reception of waterproofing material, and waterproofing material in said spaces in amount insufiicient to fill the same when the expansion joint is in uncompressed condition.

13. An expansion joint comprising a sheet of fibrous material provided with a plurality of indivldual spaces for the reception of individual preformed bodies of waterproofing material, and individual preformed bodies of waterproofing material within and only partially filling said spaces, each of said bodies being individual to one of said spaces.

14. An expansion joint comprising a corrugated felt sheet forming a plurality of individual cells within the joint and preformed bituminous rods within said cells and only partially filling the same whereby the expansion joint may be compressed without extruding the bituminous material therefrom.

LESTER WITTENBERG. 

